DUSHANBE, May 8, 2009, Asia-Plus  -- The first republican Koran recitation competition will be held in Dushanbe from May 11-12, according the Ministry of Education (MoE).

Representatives from all regions of the country will participate in the contest, which is timed to coincide with Year of Imam Azam announced in Tajikistan.

“The main objective of the contest is to determine the finest reciters and train them for international Koran recitation contests,” the source at a MoE said, noting that last year, representatives of Tajikistan participated in the international Koran recitation contest that was held in Cairo, Egypt and took the second and the fourth places.

The republican Koran recitation contest is conducted under support of President’s Executive Office and the Ministry of Education.